1. Technical Field
The invention relates to improving customer experiences. More particularly, the invention relates to discovering and predicting customer intent to improve the customer experience.
2. Description of the Background Art
The rapid adoption of the Internet and other communication technologies over the last decade has changed the way people buy products and services. While e-commerce is convenient for buyers and sellers alike, there are certain challenges faced by businesses if they are to serve their prospective clients effectively.
In traditional commerce, a customer's intent may be determined by observing the customer's behavior, body language, voice, and what the customer asks for. The best way to help a customer may be inferred based on age, sex, physical disability, socioeconomic status, etc. For example, a female wanting to buy a dress may be directed to different parts of the store depending on whether she is a teenager, an elderly woman, or overweight. A large, muscular, able-bodied man is unlikely to receive an offer to help carry his groceries out to the car.
However, it is more difficult to anticipate the needs of a customer visiting a website to engage in e-commerce because of the lack of personal information that Internet anonymity provides. It becomes more difficult to identify user needs and, as a result, it is difficult to offer useful help, or to recommend products or services, to the customer. While in a traditional brick and mortar store it may be possible to identify whether a prospective consumer is looking to buy a particular product or service, or is just window shopping, as indicated by the intensity of interest shown and questions asked, the same clues are not available from a prospective consumer in an online store.